Retreating Light
by AlexSkye1898
Summary: Quirkless, useless, a lame nerd, and a klutzy loser. Midoriya Izuku has heard it all while wildly dreaming of becoming just like All Might despite the name calling. He looks on his past with a red eyed boy and impending future at UA High with determination while remembering a fading backside that he desperately reaches out to as he journeys to turn into a brave hero.
**Retreating Light**

 **Anime/Manga:** Boku no Hero Academia

 **Songs used:** "I See Fire" by Ed Sheeran and "The Hanging Tree" by James Newton Howard. I was listening to these two songs mixed by an amazing singer named Caleb Hyles. Listen to it as you read this story, so you can get a feel for the senses within the story! Search on Youtube for: Caleb Hyles-I See Fire.

 **Disclaimer:** I do NOT own anything in this story, everything belongs to its original owners! I do NOT make any profit from making this story.

 **Warnings:** angst, past violence, mentions of bullying, broken friendship, possible swearing, mentions of gore, and Izuku being a pessimistic dude all together. You HAVE been warned!

 **Alex:** I know, I need to stop making other stuff when I have my two other stories to complete. Either way, this is from Izuku's perspective on his friendship with Katsuki in the series along with other things. Enjoy!

* * *

 ** _What can you do?!_**

"If this is to end in fire

Then we should all burn together

Watch the flames climb high into the night…"

 ** _Quirkless loser!_**

Midoriya Izuku constantly hears it on a daily basis that it's not even surprising anymore when his tormentors keep using the same insults. It doesn't matter what they say, he'll become a hero and show them all! They can punch his face, kick him in the stomach, maybe knock out some teeth, or even throw away his hero analysis journals. That won't stop him from achieving his dream, his ambition on becoming a fearless hero just like All Might. He was so excited to find out what his Quirk was going to be, it didn't have to be super amazing, but it wouldn't hurt that it would be kind of cool. The curly haired boy hoped and prayed that he'll get his power as he watched his idols' video for the hundredth time in a row. Emerald eyes shimmering in an innocent, pure light while he smiles so wide that it threatens to crack his face from the excitement he can't contain within his tiny four year old body. Young Izuku rocks wildly in the high chair when the familiar larger than life figure of his role model laughs in the face of danger. The famous quote, a brave smile that mocks evil is exactly what the fanboy wants for his future.

 ** _You should give it up…._**

" _Calling out father, oh_

 _Stand by and we will_

 _Watch the flames burn auburn on_

 _The mountain side."_

 _ **I'm sorry, Izuku!**  
_

" _Are you, are you…c_ _oming to the tree?"_

Hot, salty tears fall down his shocked green eyes when he found out that he won't become the hero that he wants to be; Fate sure can be cruel towards the curly haired boy. There's got to be a way, another path he can take to do what he needs to do. Maybe he can become a hero without Quirk, which is more impressive than having to use powers to save others. Unfortunately, the world that Izuku lives in does not quite work that way. It would be easier to have something amazing to save people, to be a top hero. There is no such thing as a Quirkless savior after all. He can't face danger and laugh in its' face like All Might; he doesn't any redeeming qualities other than an impossible dream. After finding out this fact, the bullying from his classmates got even worse than before. It's harder to escape them now they have more control over their powerful Quirks and amazing abilities. He sees behind their mocking smiles a familiar head of white blond hair and scarlet red eyes that stare at him with pure hatred. Izuku never felt more alone in his whole life knowing exactly who is with his classmates, he's practically the leader: Katsuki Bakugou also known as Kacchan. The freckled faced boy doesn't know what stings more, the cuts and bruises covering his pale body or seeing his own best friend pointing a finger at him while calling Izuku "useless". The birth of that horrible, awful nickname that soon caused a chasm like rift between him and Kaachan for the rest of their lives: _Deku_.

 ** _I hate that name….._**

" _Now I see fire…Inside the mountain_

 _I see fire…Burning the trees! And I see fire…Hollowing souls!_

 _I see fire…Blood in the breeze. And I hope that you remember me."_

Yet, it became such a common occurrence that he got used to it after some time. Apparently according to his supposed friend, the nickname means "useless" or something along those lines. Without any kind ability or strong Quirk, Izuku guesses that it suits him well. Back in his room, he scans the place with sadness in his eyes and a bitter smile present on his expression. A large poster of his idol covering a good portion of his wall closest the door along with smaller ones of the red and blue clad hero in different poses with the same fearless grin on his face. T-shirts with the hero's name and magazines featuring the number one savior scatter the floor in a disarray. A Symbol of Peace known throughout the entire population of Japan, there isn't anyone that doesn't know the name All Might. It is the name that either makes fans squeal in a frenzy or villains runs away in fear from the ultimate hero on Earth. Even his bedsheets have his idol's very name splattered all over them, he really needs another hobby. The one thing in whole room that strikes a cold chord within his being sits upon his desk, next to the computer of all things. A plastic figurine of the blond hero in his flashy costume, standing tall and brave as if ready to face the evils in the world. The toy that he held in his hand when he first watched that legendary video and the very same object he was grasping when he received the heartbreaking news that he should give up on becoming a hero since he does not have a Quirk.

" _Are you, are you, coming to the tree?_

 _They strung up a man, they say who murdered three._

 _Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be_

 _If we met at midnight, in the hanging tree…"_

Emerald eyes staring at the muscular form of his idol standing before him was better than any dream he could conjure on his own. It was such an amazing dream, he did not want it to end. He did not regret the moment he grabbed on to All Might's cargo pants as he flew through the air over the city he grew up in. Finding out his idol's terrible secret and getting less hopeful by the minute wasn't the way Izuku was expecting to spend the rare moment with his hero. Of course, he freaking knew that he couldn't become a hero when he's Quirkless! He knew, yet he figured that the blond Symbol of Peace would tell him otherwise. There was no escape from the cruel fate that he was graced with, absolutely none at all. It was the most aggravating, humiliating, and anguishing experience he ever had. Fat tears roll down his red, freckled cheeks as he bites his lips in frustration over the entire ordeal. Maybe he should give up, it was about time either way. Even Izuku the Dreamer knows when to face the inevitable reality of life. That was how the world works, you were either born with a Quirk or not at all and be forced to watch in awe by the sidelines at the saviors of the day defeat villains. Silently seeing from the background far, far away from the spotlight that the heroes have turns into an ordinary-everyday-sort-of-thing that everyone got so used to. It wasn't questioned at all, that was how their society functioned. If you have a Quirk, you become a hero or villain; if you're Quirkless, you stand aside and let the saving be done by someone else. Izuku knew that, he definitely knows that he was supposed to just quit and stay normal. Ordinary, plain, and in the shadows with every other normal person of the twenty percent that are not fortunate enough to be blessed with an amazing Quirk. Nothing new, there shouldn't be any kind of change to what is considered the "way things are" and having dreams of becoming a hero when Quirkless only gets you kicked into the rocky asphalt while being spit in the face over your naivety.

 ** _Kacchan….you promised_**

" _And I hope that you remember me….And if the night is burning_

 _I will cover my eyes for if the dark returns_

 _Then my brothers will die and as the sky is falling down_

 _It crashed into this lonely town…And with that shadow upon the ground_

 _I hear my people screaming out!"_

 ** _That you would be MY hero!_**

The one person that he was always watching since he was shoved into the sidelines is his red eyed friend. How could he ignore such a bright person? Kacchan IS super cool, very smart, incredibly brave, all powerful, amazingly strong, and a million times more confident than Izuku can ever be. The older boy has one of the most brilliant Quirks anyone has ever seen, he was the leader of the pack, the alpha amongst the omegas. He can feel a breezy wind flowing through his curly locks as he remembers the distant backside of his childhood friend walking away from him, towards a better destiny than being bound to a bland lifestyle. A shaky, unsure hand always reaching out to that fading form of Kacchan running to the horizons of becoming a hero. That image continues to burns his eyes to the point of being painful beyond belief, he doesn't want to be left behind. He needs to catch up to everyone else, to work harder than anyone has their whole lives. Izuzku needs to make All Might's Quirk his own, all by himself without his mentor's aide. The green eyed boy has to get much stronger, lift over ten tons of trash from that coastline before the exam, and enter UA on his own terms. He needs to become incredible to be able to catch up to his childhood friend, even if he ends up breaking his own heart for hurting Kacchan. The white blond boy is both Izuku's pure desire to defeat and the most difficult challenge that stands in his way from turning into a brave hero who grins a fearless smile to all.

 ** _Kacchan….you're so amazing_**

" _Now I see fire….Inside the mountains_

 _I see fire!_

 _Burning the trees…I see fire!_

 _Hollowing souls…I see fire!_

 _Blood in the breeze."_

 ** _And, that's why I HAVE to surpass you!_**

Viridian eyes blazing in a mixture of lime green and forest moss looks into the very irises that haunt him in his dreams ever since he decided to become a hero on his own terms. Izuku _wants_ to hate him, to just let the years of the constant torment burn the fires of furious rage that rattle his heart. But, he can't hate him, not completely anyways. There's always something about Kacchan that causes him to be near the borderline of hate, but he also likes him in his own way. His eyes sting from the wavering waters that he wants to shed, but refuses to look weak in front of his biggest rival anymore. He can't back down from this fight, he won't go to his Quirkless past when he came this far! Pulverizing heat threatening to melt his resolve burst from the red eyed boy's hands as he mentally and physically prepares himself for the assault. They fought, so violently that it surprises the curly haired hero-in-training that All Might hasn't stepped in to stop them. This is their fight, the only way to make it all end is for one of them to lose in this moment. It crushes him to be fighting someone he still looks up to, the very person who promised to be his hero a long time ago. Tears cling to the edges of his eyelids as he punches the older boy in the shoulder because he doesn't want to hurt Kacchan. Izuku can never hurt such an important influence in his life despite his conflicting feelings towards his childhood friend. Rage, some hatred, possible jealousy, searing anguish, agonizing pain, fond affection, fear, excitement, admiration, and even deep love fills his confused heart while they continue to bump heads in a beautifully chaotic dance that seems to go on forever.

" _Are you, are you…coming to the tree?_

 _Where dead man called out for his love to flee._

 _Strange things did happen here…No stranger would it be_

 _If we met at midnight, in the hanging tree…"_

Kacchan IS amazing, back then and now even with half his costume cut and ripped up along part of his mask torn off during their battle. The bloodlust in his eyes and scary determination to drag him down has the green eyed boy shiver in anticipation on what's going to happen next. Was he going for a broad right swing like he did in the initial ambush or try something a little more subtle? Just because his gaze always stays on the white blond doesn't mean that he can predict everything that the explosion Quirk user is going to do. Sure, he can guess some of his more obvious attacks and can make close call when he tries to do them differently. When Kacchan goes through a tactical path, it cannot be simply overlooked at all or he'll get seriously injured by a well-planned explosion. This is why he idolizes this guy, the very reason why he's fighting so hard to become his friend's equal and not his punching bag. The more prominent reasons are that Kacchan has an amazing Quirk and is very brave, but it was mostly his stubbornness to win and cunning knowledge that caused Izuku to admire him for years on end. This day, he will no longer keep his head down in fear and to stop hiding in the background! They stare down each other with possible ravaging murder in their eyes along with their pride as potential heroes within the near future.

 ** _The time for idolizing is over…._**

" _Now I see fire…Inside the mountains_

 _I see fire…Burning the trees! I see fire…Hollowing souls_

 _I see fire! Blood in the breeze….._

 _I see fire (oh you know I saw a city burning out)_

 _And I see fire (feel the heat upon my skin, yeah)_

 _And I see fire (uh-uh-uh)! Blood in the breeze!"_

He will turn into a hero, they will all see even if they don't want to. Even Quirkless, "useless" Midoriya Izuku can become a savior to all. He will save people with All Might's Quirk, he WILL fight by Kacchan's side someday as equals. No longer is he going to be a jumpy, quivering boy that is too shy and full of low self-esteem to even stand up for himself. He is going to become confidant and fearless just like his two idols. He'll become stronger than All Might and Kacchan then, be named as the greatest hero ever named. Izuku needs to fight his childhood friend, he needs to prove to everyone that he has every right as they do to attend this academy. He is going to show the blond Symbol of Peace that he can be the successor of One for All. The curly haired high schooler can walk into those esteemed hallways with a brave smile and turn into the hero that he wants to be. It nearly devastated his heart watching the red eyed boy spiral into a fury and a single tear rolls down a freckled cheek as he looks on at his childhood friend, the obstacle that would challenge his days at UA, a bully that picked on him for years, and the person he held in highest regard along with idolizing the longest next to All Might. Blood trickled down in tiny droplets on to the concrete ground under his feet as he bit his lip in grief and mourning over his lost, fallen friend who promised to be his hero so many memories ago. It hurts so freaking much watching him, silently just like he always did in the distant past. Izuku never wanted this, he didn't want to take down someone he deeply admired for such a long time. Emerald eyes look on into those still burning scarlet hues with determination and wounded affection over his own personal and secret promise to Kacchan. This is one that he is going to keep no matter what, it is forever written in his very soul, a binding word worth fighting for.

 ** _This time….I'll be YOUR hero, Kacchan!_**

" _Are you, are you, coming to the tree?"_

 ** _I swear it!_**

* * *

 **The End**

 **Alex:** Thank you Peeps for reading Retreating Light! Please review/favorite if you like it! Fluff up your feather for more stuff! Bye bye!


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